128mb vs 256mb vram?

For gaming you would prefer 256 MBs of VRAM as well as for any graphic intensive usage.

No worries, the gfx chip in your CD was underclocked which is not the case for the C2D so you will actually get better performance!

From what I hear, there is little difference from the 128 to the 256, only 5-6 fps more. You should look this up on the apple discussions itself. There was a huge post about this that was explained very well. In fact I went with the 128 myself

I have the 128mb model as well and i have not noticed any slow-ups. It's difficult to fill the 128mb - let alone 256mb unless you're playing like Doom 3 or something with HUGE textures in games.... even then you would gain minimal FPS...

The differnce from 256 and 128 is huge!!! I was amazed at how much the video ram increased my abilities for gaming and video!!! I would def make sure they send you EXACTLY what you have in terms of specs. No way they should gimp you in Vram. I mean talk about adding insult to injury.

The gain would be minimal? WOw this really isnt true from my own experience. I have had an iMac with 128 for a few years now and just got a new MacBook Pro with 256 mb of video ram and the differnce is UNREAL! I mean it is really a huge differnce. So saying that the gain would be small, the fact of the matter is its nearly DOUBLE the frames per second. Literally!

Dean812, you are comparing a few years old iMac with 128 mb VRAM to a brand new MBP wth 256 mb VRAM. First of all, your imac isn't dual core, it is PowerPC, has probably more than half the RAM of the MBP and is slower RAM, has slower and smaller HDD, much slower graphics processor so when you say that the performances differ by alot, you are right! Your iMac is much slower in all aspects. You should know that the amount of video RAM really doesn't make all dfference. The speed / size of RAM does, the power of the graphics processor, the HDD speed...Your comparison is anything but valid man.

VRAM is the least important aspect of performance differences btwn. Macbook Pro's. (128MB vs. 256). If you are doing 3D modeling / rendering then 256MB of vram would be a benefit.

from TweakGuides.com :

The VRAM Stores the Data


The data entering the graphics card is now stored on the card's own local memory, called Video RAM (VRAM), just two chips of which are circled in red above. These onboard VRAM chips provide a similar service to that of regular system RAM on your motherboard; a temporary storage area designed to help speed up calculations by the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) - circled in yellow above. Basically as you can see, your graphics card is almost like a miniature PC within itself, with its own CPU (GPU), RAM (VRAM) and motherboard (PCB), and operates in much the same way. VRAM in particular not only serves as storage point for data to be calculated for rendering, it also holds completed images (frames) ready for sending to your monitor - see Step 8 further below for details.

This is the reason why the amount of VRAM is increasingly becoming larger and more important on modern graphics cards. The more information that can be held onboard the graphics card's VRAM, the more quickly the GPU can process data and not have to pause to allow more data to be loaded up into VRAM. For example, games with high resolution textures require more VRAM space. When space runs out in VRAM, existing unused textures have to be switched out and new ones loaded up from your hard drive and/or system RAM into the VRAM. This slight pause which results is commonly referred to as hitching (when data loads into VRAM) or stuttering (when data loads up from the hard drive first), and is most noticeable when you enter new areas or see new objects during a game. Your graphics card literally pauses to wait for new data to be loaded for display before continuing.

Performance Tip: This step highlights the importance of having more VRAM on your graphics card. If running a game on a card with less VRAM, you must lower your texture settings and/or resolution, otherwise you will get more hitching/stuttering as data is constantly swapped into and out of the VRAM. This is particularly true if you have a slower hard drive and less system RAM as well. Note further that cooling the VRAM properly is also essential, as almost all cases of noticeable graphical glitches (also called 'Artifacts'), and many crashes and lockups, are due to overheating VRAM. Remember that the temperature sensor on your graphics card is not located on the VRAM - it is on or close to the GPU; so your VRAM can often run much hotter.

V M1, true. Didnt think of my iMac G5 as very old. It still looks and runs as new so I always think of it as a new addition to my Mac collection. lol. Yea Im sure there are many aspects of the specs of the two I dont understand. While Im very fluent in Macs I am not at all very versed in what differing types of ram or vram are and how they compare.

But for me, the differnce between the two is enormous. I see World of Warcraft in a new way now. PLaying that game on my MBP is like playing a whole different game. On my iMac I have the settings all the way down and on the MacBook Pro, they are as high as they get. Anyways, good point V M1.

Ultimately, unless you're going to be usign applications that really push the GPU hard you aren't going to notice any difference. For instance, you'll notice it with 3D games, Final Cut Studio, Aperture and applications that are benefitted by the GPU. Yes the added VRAM does allow our GPU to do its work much better although unless you're really making it work the 128MB difference is neither here nor there.

V M1, true. Didnt think of my iMac G5 as very old. It
still looks and runs as new so I always think of it
as a new addition to my Mac collection. lol. Yea Im
sure there are many aspects of the specs of the two I
dont understand. While Im very fluent in Macs I am
not at all very versed in what differing types of ram
or vram are and how they compare.

But for me, the differnce between the two is
enormous. I see World of Warcraft in a new way now.
PLaying that game on my MBP is like playing a whole
different game. On my iMac I have the settings all
the way down and on the MacBook Pro, they are as high
as they get. Anyways, good point V M1.

Tests have also shown that the Intel chips better handle OpenGL divers than PPC ones, which means better frame rates in games, and other 3D rendering situations. The x1600 in your Macbook Pro is bounds ahead of the best graphics card in the iMac G5 line, which were outdated, even at the time, Radeon chips, like the 9600 or x600 XT.

Yes sounds like its a better fit to go with the current model. You know I have heard so many horror stories about the early MBP models but I must have gotten so lucky because I havent had one single problem with mine. Not even a hiccup. Mine is covered by the 3 yr AppleCare Protection Plan though you can bet!

Good luck with your new machine. Maybe this one will be trouble free for years and years making up for all the trouble you had with the first one. We can hope anyways. Sounds like the new ones have a much lower incidence of issues anyway. ( As is usual with later revisions of Apple computers.)

does iMovie, iPhoto, and Photoshop CS2 really burden the gpu?

No.